How to Complete the Naming or Substitution of a Pension Beneficiary Form

(Shows up on screen: Public Services and Procurement Canada. The words fade. Background music: jingle with acoustic guitar. Welcome page on white background showing hexagonal shaped icons with different images. In the middle, the words Government of Canada Pension Centre and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police logo appear and then disappear. Soft instrumental music playing. The narrator is standing in front of the camera.)

At the Government of Canada Pension Centre, we’re here to help.

Hi! My name is ReBecca! I am here to help you understand and complete the “Naming or Substitution of a Pension Beneficiary” form.

It is important to first understand that if there is an eligible survivor and/or dependent child or children at the time of your death, any pension death benefit would be payable to them, regardless of any pension beneficiary designation you make on this form.

If, however, at the time of your death, there is no eligible survivor or children, the pension death benefit, also known as the “minimum benefit”, will be payable to your designated pension beneficiary, but only if you completed and submitted the “Naming or Substitution of a Pension Beneficiary” form prior to your death.

(When the narrator says “… benefit, also known as the …” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-left corner of the screen, with the words MINIMUM BENEFIT. The text box disappears to the left.)

(When the narrator says “… Naming or Substitution of a Pension …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-left corner of the screen, with the words NAMING OR SUBSTITUTION OF A PENSION BENEFICIARY. The text box disappears to the left.)

(Background music continues. The narrator is still standing but at a different angle.)

You may be asking yourself, “What is the minimum benefit your designated beneficiary would receive?” So before we continue, let me explain it. If, at your time of death, you do not have an eligible survivor or children, the pension plan will pay the greater of your contributions plus interest and an amount equal to five years' worth of pension payments, minus any pension payments already made to you, to your designated beneficiary. If you're not entitled to a pension, the greater of your contributions plus interest, and an amount equal to one month’s pay for each year of pensionable service calculated based on the member’s pay at time of death, would instead be payable to your designated beneficiary.

(When the narrator says “… asking yourself …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words WHAT IS THE MINIMUM BENEFIT? The text box disappears upwards.)

(When the narrator says “… greater of your contributions plus interest …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words GREATER OF :, CONTRIBUTIONS + INTEREST, OR, 5 YEARS OF UNREDUCED PENSION and MINUS ANY PENSION ALREADY PAID. The text box disappears upwards.)

(When the narrator says “… you're not entitled to a pension …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words CONTRIBUTIONS + INTEREST and 1 MONTH’S PAY X # YEARS PENSIONABLE SERVICE BASED ON YOUR PAY. The text box disappears upwards.)

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The beneficiary designation form is a legal document that gives you the power to choose who receives the minimum benefit upon your death. Again though, only in the event that there is no eligible survivor or children. Let’s say that you never completed or sent in a pension beneficiary designation form. What happens then? Well, the minimum benefit would automatically be paid to your estate.

(When the narrator says “… that gives you the power to choose …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words CHOOSE WHO RECEIVES THE MINIMUM BENEFIT IF YOU HAVE NO SURVIVOR OR NO CHILDREN. The words WHO, NO SURVIVOR and NO CHILDREN are in bold text. The text box disappears upwards.)

It is also important to understand that the provisions of a will, separation agreement or court order will not, I repeat, will not have any effect on the designated beneficiary’s entitlement to the minimum benefit. This means that if there is no eligible survivor or children, the payment will always be made to the designated beneficiary on file or your estate if no designation form was completed, regardless of what is stated in any of these documents or agreements.

(When the narrator says “… also important to understand …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words NOT AFFECTED BY:, A WILL, SEPARATION AGREEMENT and COURT ORDER. The text box disappears upwards.)

To designate a beneficiary, you must complete the “Naming or Substitution of a Pension Beneficiary” form. This is form number RCMP-GRC 2196. You should have received this form with your enrolment package.

(On full screen appears the NAMING OR SUBSTITUTION OF A BENEFICIARY form. The narrator explains how to fill out the form off screen. When the voice says “… you must complete …,” the NAMING OR SUBSTITUTION OF A PENSION BENEFICIARY title is highlighted in yellow, and is shown in a close-up image in the top-right corner of the screen. When the voice says “… this is form number …,” the form number RCMP-GRC 2196 is highlighted in yellow on the screen, and is shown in a close-up image in the bottom-left corner of the screen.)

(Narrator voice over. On screen is a close-up of the pre-filled PLAN MEMBER’S PERSONAL INFORMATION section.)

You can only designate one person as the beneficiary. Other than your estate, you can also name any person over 18 years of age on the date of naming, or a charitable, benevolent, religious or educational institution as the beneficiary. You can obtain the institution’s registration number by calling the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). You can also consult the list of registered institutions or charities on the CRA website. An ineligible or ambiguous designation will render this form invalid.

(When the narrator says: “You can also obtain …,” the Government of Canada list of charities from the CRA website appears.)

Remember to sign the form and also have a witness sign. This witness must be at least 18 years of age, and must be someone other than the beneficiary.

(When the narrator says: “Remember to sign the form …,” we see the signatures on the form, and the form scrolls slowly from the right to the left.)

If you make mistakes while completing your form, amendments must be initialled by you and the witness.

Once fully completed and signed, the form bearing the original signatures must be mailed to the address indicated on page 3. The form can be completed electronically, but you must then print it and sign the hard copy. Electronic signatures are not valid.

(When the narrator says: “If you make mistakes …,” there is a close-up of the form at the GIVEN NAMES field, where the name DENISE is crossed off in blue ink and has the initials of JS and BS next to it. Then the screen zooms onto the Date-of-Birth and Relationship to You fields, and the date of 1997-03-16 and name DAUGHTER are both crossed off in blue ink and are initialled by JS and BS. When the voice says: “Once fully completed …,” there is a close-up on the screen from page 3 of the form, showing the mailing address highlighted in yellow: Government of Canada Pension Centre - Mail Service, 150 Dion Boulevard, PO Box 8500, Matane, QC, G4W 0E2.)

(The narrator is standing in front of the camera.)

It is recommended that you keep a copy for your records, but you must send the original signed form because it is a legal document. Remember as well that you will need to submit a new form if you decide to change your designated beneficiary at a later date, or if there is any change to your beneficiary’s contact information. You can access the form on the RCMP Pension and Benefits website.

(When the narrator says “… recommended that you keep …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top-right corner of the screen, with the words KEEP A COPY FOR YOUR RECORDS and SEND THE ORIGINAL SIGNED FORM. The word ORIGINAL is in bold text. The box remains and the words disappear. When the narrator says “Remember as well that …,” the words SUBMIT NEW FORM IF:, DESIGNATED BENEFICIARY CHANGES and OR THEIR CONTACT INFORMATION CHANGES appear. The text box disappears upwards.)

The Government of Canada Pension Centre must receive your designation form before you pass away. Otherwise, it will be invalid and the last valid form on file will be used to make the payment.

We recommend that you use express mail to send your form, which also provides a confirmation of delivery.

(Background music continues. The narrator is still standing but at a different angle.)

I hope this was helpful to you. Should you have any questions regarding this video, feel free to contact us! You can also access more information about your pension plan by visiting rcmp-grc.pension.gc.ca.

(When the narrator says “… by visiting …,” a black text box with white letters appears on the top right of the screen, with the words RCMP-GRC.PENSION.GC.CA.)

Thanks for watching!

(Background music playing… Contact information page, with the words CONTACT INFORMATION [underlined]: GOVERNMENT OF CANADA PENSION CENTRE—MAIL FACILITY, PO BOX 8500, MATANE, QC, G4W 0E2. Logo of a small telephone, followed by the word TELEPHONE: 1–855–502–7090. Logo of a small envelope, followed by the word EMAIL: PensionCentreRCMP.CentredespensionsGRC@pwgsc-tpsgc.gc.ca. White screen with the words CHECK US OUT: Logo for Facebook and the words /PSPC.SPAC. Logo for Instagram and the words @pspc_spac. Logo for Twitter with the words @pspc_spac. Logo for YouTube and the words /PWGSCanada. White screen with the Government of Canada Pension Centre logo in black, with a small red Canadian flag. The volume of the music goes down and stops. The Canada logo appears in black, on white background. The Canadian flag is waving. A 4-note jingle is heard.)